WA’s population now comes from every country in the world, speaks about 270 languages and identifies with more than 100 religious faiths.

The Barnett Government crowned this phenomenon “super diversity” in last month’s Budget.

Treasurer Mike Nahan said in the past five years about 70 per cent of the migrants who came to WA were skilled – establishing a “critical population base” that is helping open up industries, create cities and introduce new technologies.

“Many migrants have a high level of commitment to create successful and fulfilling lives because they have chosen to make WA their home,” he said.

TOP TEN LANGUAGES OTHER THAN ENGLISH SPOKEN AT HOME IN WA:

Italian (21 per cent)

Mandarin (19 per cent)

Cantonese (12 per cent)

Vietnamese (11 per cent)

Arabic (8 per cent)

Afrikaans (7 per cent)

Indonesian (6 per cent)

German (6 per cent)

Tagalog (Philippines) (5 per cent)

Spanish (5 per cent)

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TOP TEN LANGUAGES OTHER THAN ENGLISH SPOKEN AT HOME IN WA: Italian (21 per cent)Mandarin (19 per cent)Cantonese (12 per cent) Vietnamese (11 per cent)Arabic (8 per cent)Afrikaans (7 per cent)Indonesian (6 per cent)German (6 per cent)Tagalog (Philippines) (5 per cent)Spanish (5 per cent)

Multicultural Services Centre of WA executive director Ramdas Sankaran said WA was a shining light for how well multiculturalism could work.

“The days where a country had just one predominant ethnic, cultural or religious group and very small minority groups are fast disappearing,’’ he said.

“The more accomplished and comfortable we are with speaking the language and understanding the culture of Asian countries, the better the prospects are that we have for trade and commerce.’’

Mr Sankaran said many migrants were attracted to WA because of the climate, proximity to Asia and availability of cheap flights to the continent.

Most migrants to WA come from the UK, New Zealand and South Africa.

Recent census data shows 31 per cent of West Australians, and 35 per cent of Perth residents, were born overseas.

More than half have at least one parent born overseas.

West Australians for Racial Equality president Suresh Rajan said the types of people moving to Australia had changed dramatically.

“The nature of immigration back in the 1950s and ’60s was largely from England and the wider European market, but over the past few years that’s been replaced largely by people from the Indian subcontinent, the Philippines and South Africa,’’ Mr Rajan said.